


Yugioh: Mythicys Counter

by MechanicusAngelus



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! - All Media Types
Genre: Duel Monsters, Duelling
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-18
Updated: 2020-12-28
Packaged: 2021-03-11 05:27:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,442
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28149834
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MechanicusAngelus/pseuds/MechanicusAngelus
Summary: Yuichi Arrow is a Duelist in the Town of Soulton; but when Mysteries about himself, his missing sister, and the origins of duel monsters, let alone the fact that other dimensions exist, quickly turn the friendly card game into a tool for many different, and often destructive, things.Can Yuichi and his new friends find their answers, and save everything that they know?(This is to eventually become a manga, drawn by me, and then more hopefully, an animation! My cowriter does not have an account on here yet, but also he hasn't helped with the earlier parts of the book. I'll put a note in where his input begins.)
Kudos: 1





	1. Introductions

“Sooooooo? You ready to make some duelists get their decks handed to them?” A grinning face appeared in the corner of Yuichi’s eyesight, beaming happily at him. Breaking from his thoughts, he looked up at her, almost as if he was lost within his own mind until her input jarred him from it.

“Mhm. I’m hoping there will be some proper challenges at the tournament.” He stood up, pocketing his Duel Monsters Deck and picking up his schoolbag, pendant bouncing on his chest.

His twin sister, Yuna, huffed at him, crossing her arms. “The least you could do is look happy about it you know! This is exciting!”

“I am happy about it Yuna, you know that.” He sighed with exasperation, beginning to walk out of the classroom. “I don’t have to be as expressive as you. It’s tiring to be that excited all the time.”

“Pfffft, I swear, all boys think about is eating, sleeping and their games. Nothing ever changes~” She spoke dramatically, before chuckling and walking alongside her brother.

Exiting the gates of Soulton High, Yuichi did start to feel the bubble of excitement grow in his chest. He looked to the sky, smiling to himself as he thought about the short time left there was until he was a tournament participant. He had always wanted to participate, and he finally felt he was ready to take on anyone. Everyone who had watched him duel at school said he was a super serious duelist, but he didn’t see it that way. To him, he as the duelist was the mind, and he let his deck show and speak his heart. He knew most people didn’t think too much of the deck, and it was all about the duelist, but without a deck, there is no duelist. And without a duelist, a deck is useless, just like how the mind and heart are connected. By working in sync, anything is possible. His heart was in his cards, and always had been, since the very first day he ever got his own Duel Monsters card.

Yuna looked at his expression, and decided to speak up. “With the grin you have on your face, people might think you are imagining all the cute girls you’ll meet at the tournament.” This made Yuichi stop in his tracks, and his cheeks tinged slightly with pink embarrassment.

“YUNA, not fair! That’s not the sort of thing I would think about! You know I focus on the duels!” Yuna laughed at her brother's defensive response.

“I was just teasing, no need to get your deck in the dumps! You were just smiling weirdly, so I said what came to mind- and boy am I glad I did! Anyway, did you hear? Derrick is going to be in the tournament too, and whisper on the wind is, that Mr Emanuel will be there too.”

“Mr Emanuel? Why would he be there? He is hardly ever in his shop.” Yuichi wondered how much truth to the remark there would be. He ran a store that sold Duel Monsters cards, which was the only place Yuichi had ever found the Dragonsbane cards he collected.

Yuna stopped at the end of the block, and pointed down the street, further into town. “Why don’t we stop by, and see if we can ask him ourselves?”

Yuichi considered this, and gave a nod. “Sounds like a plan.”

~~~

They arrived at the card shop after a few minutes of walking, the bell ringing as the door swung open. It was only a small shop, but here you could buy specific cards, unlike most shops which sold them in small, sealed packets with random cards inside. Here, rare cards could be bought, and particular cards for finishing sets were acquired. Some people, like Yuichi, could have specific cards ordered in for them here, if they were willing to pay the extra money.

For once, Mr Emanuel was behind the counter, actually attending his own store. A look of surprise crossed Yuichi’s face, and Yuna waved hello to the aging man. “Mr Emanuel! No time Long see!”

Emanuel looked up at the new customers, and chuckled. “Ah, Yuna, it has been a long time since I saw you last. And is that a Yuichi I spy hiding over there in the shadows?”

Yuichi stepped into the light, nodding his head once in acknowledgement. “Hello Mr Emanuel. How have you been?”

“Quite busy as a matter of fact, especially with the tournament starting tomorrow.” He had a cheery smile, before remembering something and going under his desk. “Ah, Jack also let me know that your order came in.” He placed a brand new card, in a clear, sealed plastic bag onto the bench. Yuichi, who had already paid for the card, came over and picked it up gingerly in his hands. The card wasn’t anything particularly powerful, but it meant a lot to him. Dragonsbane cards were hard to come by, and this one, Yuna had helped him choose.

The card was called Dragonsbane; Spirit Walkers, and though it was a level 9 card that required a ritual card to summon it, and that it was powerful even without its abilities, neither of them could quite state what it was about the card that drew them both to it.

Yuna had never played Duel Monsters, always claiming that she was content watching him win instead of winning herself. He always appreciated her support, and he felt better knowing that she had a part in choosing part of his deck, since both she and it were apart of his heart. He was a fierce defender of her, even if he had little need to show it, and now, with this card, his deck was complete.

_ “Every person has a card that calls out to their soul. Not everyone however, is able to discover this for themselves.” _ Emanuel had told them then, and that was also the day that Yuichi had been able to obtained the card he resonated with most; Dragonsbane King Knight.

Yuichi, returning mentally to the present, opened the card pack, and added it into his deck, which he always kept in a card box on one of his belts. “Thank you Emanuel. Now, no one can stop me.” He grinned. “I’m going to ace this tournament, and the more dragons people bring, the more I can take down.”

Yuna clapped her hands together, grinning. “There you go! There’s some of that enthusiasm I was hoping for!”

Emanuel had a satisfied look on his face. “I’m glad that you have everything you will need. Good luck tomorrow, and keep an eye out for Jack- He should be wandering around and watching some duels himself tomorrow.” Jack, Emanuel’s son, was a kid that was supposed to be in Yuichi’s class, but never usually showed up because he was too busy running the shop while his father was out.

“I’ll keep an eye out. Thanks again Emanuel.” Yuichi and Yuna said their goodbyes, and left for home.

When they walked out the door, Yuichi poked Yuna in the ribs. "Its 'long time no see'."

"Oi!" She exclaimed at the poke. "What are you on about?"

Yuichi sighed. "When you greeted Mr Emmanuel, you said it the wrong way around. Instead of saying long time no see, you said no time long see. I just wanted to let you know, but whatever."

"He didn't seem to mind?" Yuna shrugged.

"Like I said, it's whatever…" he shrugged as well, dropping the subject.

~~~

Heading back the way they came, Yuichi couldn’t help but look at his Dragonsbane King's Knight card. He was lost in thought, as if he and the card were communicating to each other. It was an Xyz creature, so it lived in his Extra deck- making it always easy to find.

“Hey Yuichi-” Yuna stopped out the front of their house. Yuichi looked up from his card, curious as to what she had to say. “You’re not having any doubts, are you? You only ever look to that card when you need some sort of final reassurance.”

“Maybe just a few, but I guess doubt is to be expected before something like this. Duel Monsters is a big game, and I’m going to be apart of its very first tournament- that’s pretty big, isn’t it?”

“So what?” She burst, making him jump. “Just because it's some big event doesn’t mean the game itself is any different. It’s just like a game in the school library, except that there are going to be officials around the place that ensure no cheating happens.”

Yuichi sighed. He knew what his sister was trying to say, and he appreciated it. “Thank you Yuna.”

She took a step towards him, and with one hand, poked his necklace, whilst holding her own in her other hand. “Just remember, we’re twins- so we are always in each other's hearts, even if we aren’t right next to each other, we will always support each other. Family is important, but we’re friends too, and friendship, true friendship is strong. Never forget that.” This took him by surprise in a different way. He had never heard her speak like this before, but then again, he supposed she had never needed to before either.

“I promise, I won’t forget.”

“Good.” She stepped back, and after a long breath out, she went inside. Yuichi looked down at his card again, his other hand around his pendant. Then, he gave a small smile, and followed his twin inside, his confidence of the following day like an unbreachable fortress around his heart. He was going to do well, and he knew it. No one could withstand the might of the Dragonsbane.


	2. Beginning the Tournament

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There's an announcement to kick off the Dragon King Tournament, and Yuichi finds himself without his sister Yuna, but instead, beginning his very first duel of the tournament.

“Come on Yuichi, are you ready?” Yuna knocked on his bedroom door, waiting for her brother to emerge. Yuichi clipped on his second belt, and slipped his deck into it’s box, before grabbing the yellow square of cloth that signified his participation in the initial round of the competition. It worked like a tie, or a bandanna, or a handkerchief, Yuichi supposed. Opening the door, he held it out to Yuna.

“Can you tie this around my arm please? I can’t do it myself.” With a smiling chuckle, Yuna took it from his hand and stepped to stand beside him, looping it under his arm so she could tie the corners together.

“All ready then?” She finished tying it above his jacket’s tattered left sleeve. “It’s not too tight, is it?”

Yuichi shook his head. “Not at all. Thanks Yuna.”

They left their house, hurrying into town so they wouldn’t be late for the start of the tournament. Though they did remember seeing someone running in the opposite direction, despite having a yellow marker like Yuichi's.

"Hey, tournament is the other way!" Yuna called out to him, but he didn't respond, just continuing to run. She shrugged and kept walking with Yuichi. "Maybe he got scared and ran home."

~~~

The event was huge in town, and the streets were busy, but due to the yellow band on Yuichi’s arm, and the firm grip he had on his sister’s hand, they were able to make their way inside. 

“Inside” was a massive convention centre, with tables set up every few metres so duels could commence. The crowds were thick all the way up until the rope that separated spectators from duelists, and that was where Yuna tugged on Yuichi’s hand.

“I’ll meet up with you later, alright brother?” She called over the crowd.

A quick look of worry crossed his face, not wanting to lose her among the people. “Are you sure?” He called back. With a nod of her head, she let go of his hand, and grabbed her necklace, to remind him of the promise he made the day before. Yuichi, seeing this, calmed down again, and nodded, before slipping through the last few people, into the less crowded, duelists area. There was a stage in the front, and what looked like an easel draped with an expensive red cloth.

The announcer walked onto the stage, and the buzz of excitement began to quieten down so that everyone could listen.

“Welcome everyone to the first ever Duel Monsters Tournament! This year, at the Dragon King Tournament, we have devised a very special occasion for spectators and duelists alike- with a fabulous prize- being crowned the Champion of Duelists! The first round is simple; Defeat four opponents and collect their sashes, before coming to the foyer to present your winnings to enter the second round. All those who make it will enter into a bracket system to face off against specialist duelists hand picked by the creator of this tournament to go up against our everyday duelist. When all the duels of that round are over, we will see how many are left, and take it from there! Now, we have a special, new piece of technology outside that allows for holographic dueling!"

The crowd began to murmur in surprise. Hologram dueling? Holograms only existed in science fiction!

"That's right my duel-loving friends! These duels will be held mostly inside, but if you look outside a moment,” The announcer pointed out the window into the convention centre grounds, where unusual looking stadiums were set up. “We have some very special dueling arenas set up outside, that bring the cards to life!” Excited chatter filled the room again.

“The arena presents holograms of each card, providing a much more interactive display for onlookers! And now, just to recap; After you collect four more yellow armbands in addition to the one you already possess, you will become the best of the everyday duelists, and have the chance to become the best duelist in the world! Good luck to you all, and happy dueling!”

~~~

Some duelists that already knew each other headed off to a table, some rushing out to try and snag a go at one of the hologram fields outside. Yuichi didn’t care much for them, as he felt his cards were good enough as they were- they didn’t need to impress anyone. Wandering somewhat aimlessly, he passed by a few different duels, even spotting a few fellow students from his school.

“Hey, you there, duelist!” A voice spoke from behind him. He looked around, then down. A somewhat short girl was staring up fiercely at him, and to his surprise, she had a yellow marker around her neck, like he had on his arm. “Duel me!”

“Are you sure?” His hesitation made the girl get more mad.

“OF COURSE I AM SURE!” She sat huffily down at one of the tables, staring at him as she expected him to do the same. Not having anything better to do, and needing to win her marker, he decided to do it. 

An official came over, and confirmed the duel was beginning. “Names?”

“Yuichi Arrow.” He replied, shuffling his cards once his extra deck was put to one side.

“Rosalind Equidae.” The girl replied. As he sat opposite her, he saw that she was older than he first thought, much closer to his age, she just acted like a child so far.

The two drew a card each, comparing the attack points to see who would decide to go first. Yuichi drew Dragonsbane Sky Rider, which had 1500 attack points, and Rosalind drew a spell card called Pony Party, which allowed her to summon three Pony tokens to the field. Since it was a spell, and Yuichi drew a monster, he had the choice of who should go first.

“You take the first turn.” He spoke, looking at his cards. An expression of surprise flitted across Rosalind’s face, quickly being replaced by an angry one.

“Are you making fun of me?” The solemn shake of his head made her calm down again.

“It’s already clear to me that you feel strongly about your deck. I wanted to see what you could do. I’m not used to dueling people that care about their cards, and the spell card you drew earlier suggests that you care a great deal about your cards. So, show me if I am right.”

Humbled, and a little nervous now, Rosalind accepted. “Alright then. I play the field spell Grassy Plains, which boosts all Beast monsters attack by 300 points.” She placed the card in the field spell area on her side of the playing area. Instead of mats, the card sections had been etched into the table.

“Then I play the spell Pony Party, which allows me to summon three level two Pony Tokens to my field. I then play one card face down in defense mode and end my turn.” Thanks to the field spell, instead of being 0/0 monsters, the Pony Tokens were 300/0 instead. But with her leaving them in attack mode made him think it was either a condition of the spell card, or, more likely, it was a trap, thanks to her face down card.

“My turn then.” He drew one card, giving him six cards to start off with. “I summon forth the Dragonsbane Garrison, using it’s ability to count it as a special summon. It is allowed to be summoned when you have monsters, and I do not.” He placed the Level 4 monster down into one of his monster zones in defence mode, as it had 2000 defence points compared to its 1500 attack points.

“I then summon my Dragonsbane Messenger, which also lets me summon another level four or below monster from my hand, meaning Dragonsbane Sky Rider is coming to join it.” He played the two level three cards next to each other, Dragonsbane Messenger having 1200/1100, in attack mode, and Dragonsbane Sky Rider having 1500/1200.

“Woah, on your first turn? Three proper monsters? That’s quite the force.” Rosalind bit her lip, suddenly feeling a little undermatched against Yuichi. She wasn’t going to give up though, as she still had her trap card.

“My Dragonsbane cards are relentless, even when there aren’t any dragons on the field. If this wasn’t a tournament, I’d slow down to see what else your deck has to offer, its full potential, but not today. Sorry Rosalind.”

“Hey, don’t be sorry, just play! I don’t need your sympathy, its a duel after all, and I’m not quitting!” Yuichi chuckled, admiring her persistence.

“Alright then. I play the card Dragonsbane Fortress. As a field spell, it increases all monsters with the name ‘Dragonsbane’ by 300 attack points. And now-”

“You’re still going??” Rosalind wasn’t used to facing someone with such a long Main Phase 1 before.”

“Mhm. As I was saying, I now overlay my two level three monsters, Dragonsbane Sky Rider and Dragonsbane Messenger, summoning out my Dragonsbane General.” Dragonsbane General was a Rank three Xyz monster with two Xyz materials, one special ability and 2500/2500 as a base, though with Dragonsbane Fortress on the field, its attack points boosted to having 2800.

“I use one overlay unit to activate my Dragonsbane General’s special ability, and that increases its attack by another 500 points, as well as my Dragonsbane Garrison’s, due to it being a warrior type. However, since it is in defence mode, I’ll only attack you with one of my monsters.”

“Finally! Battle phase, you took long enough.” Rosalind let out a long sigh, as she had been holding her breath for a while.

Yuichi chuckled, and engaged in an attack. “My Dragonsbane General attacks your Pony token, and since its in attack mode, my attack will currently destroy your creature, and deal you 3000 points of damage.” Players only had 4000 Life Points in this tournament, though the actual game usually gave them 8000.

“Nuh-uh!” Rosalind gave a triumphant grin. “I play the trap Half Unbreak, which allows me to save my pretty pony token, and only take half the damage.” She winked, and discarded the trap. Now, Rosalind had 2500 LP.

“Nice work. I play one card face down, and end my turn. Which means my warriors attack points are reduced by 500 again.”

Rosalind did a little dance in her chair as she was able to draw a card. He had never seen someone else actually enjoy themselves even though they were in the losing position before. “First off, I play the spell card Pony Pastures. Since I have one or more Pony cards on my field, I get to draw two cards.” She took a moment to consider her hand before continuing.

“Here we go! I summon Level 2 Pony Pal to my field.” It had 900/600 attack and defense points. “Aaaaand nooooooow-” She reached over to her monsters on the field, gathering them all up, and putting them into the graveyard. “I tribute all four of my monsters to summon two new ones from my hand! Welcome out my level 8 Pony Princess and Pony Prince!” Pony Princess had 2700/2500, and Pony Prince had 3000/2800 as their base statistics, which were both boosted by Rosalind’s field spell.

“And now, in my battle phase, I activate my Pony Prince’s special ability. By giving up his chance to attack, I can destroy one card on your side of the field, and I choose to destroy your field spell Dragonsbane Fortress! Now, to activate that effect again a second time, I have to discard a card, and that lets me destroy your Dragonsbane Garrison.” She discarded the last card in her hand, and Yuichi discarded the two cards she had targeted.

“Now, my Pony Princess attacks your Dragonsbane General!” She felt proud of herself for being able to weaken Yuichi as much as she had. Her Pony Princess had 3000 attack points compared to his General’s 2500. However, Yuichi had two added advantages- One was to use his General’s special ability, and the other was to play his trap card.

“I activate my General’s special ability, raising his attack points by 500 until the end of the turn.” Yuichi declared, sending his second monster that was being used as an Xyz material to his graveyard.

“Wait, you can do that on my turn? Dangit, I forgot!” Rosalind’s face fell.

“I also activate my trap card, Kunai with Chain. It changes your monster to defense mode, and boosts my monsters attack points by 500.” For now, Dragonsbane General now had 3500 attack points, but his special effect only lasted until the end of Rosalind’s turn.

“At least I didn’t lose any life points… And since I have no cards in my hand, I end my turn.” She sighed, wishing her attack had connected.

“At least you have two powerful monsters on the field still.” He pointed out as he drew a new card. This made Rosalind smile a little again, though Yuichi was too busy contemplating his cards for the time being.

“Now, I activate a monsters special ability from my hand. By discarding one Captured dragon, I can summon Dragonsbane, the Great Betrayer to the field.” He put his captured dragon from his hand to his graveyard, and placed his Great Betrayer monster beside his General. Dragonsbane the Great Betrayer had 3500/2500, and he realized that he was able to destroy both monsters that Rosalind had on the field.

“Now, I attack your Pony Princess with my Dragonsbane General.”

Her face brightened a little. “Once per turn, my Pony Princess can’t be destroyed in battle when Pony another pony card is on the field with her!”

“Interesting ability.” Yuichi conceded. “Well, I attack your Pony Prince with my Dragonsbane, the Great Betrayer.” Rosalind reluctantly moved her prince to the graveyard, and was dealt another 500 points of damage, leaving her on 2000 life points now.

“I now end my turn.” He nodded to Rosalind, for her to begin her turn,

She took a deep breath in, and placed her finger on top of her deck. “I really hope this is a good card.” She bit her lip as she drew, but when she saw the card, her shoulders dropped. “I can’t use it, so, I end my turn.”

“Maybe you will be able to next turn?” Yuichi suggested as he began his turn. “Since both of my monsters are able to deal enough damage to Pony Princess this turn to destroy her, they both attack, meaning she is destroyed regardless of her ability, but you take no damage at least. I place one card face down and end my turn.”

Rosalind drew another card, not looking too hopeful. “I summon the monster Pony Pegasus-”

“I play the trap card Trap Hole.” Yuichi interjected.

“Aw man, you win then! I can’t play anything to stop you…” She buried her face in her hands, disappointed with herself. Yuichi wished Yuna was here, because he knew his sister was a bit better at cheering other people up in comparison to himself.

“Thank you for dueling me. It was nice to go against a deck that didn’t have a dragon in it for once, its quite refreshing really.”

Rosalind looked at him. “Yeah, I love ponies too much to put anything else into my deck. I live on a ranch with my family, so I’ve been around equines my whole life.”

“Sounds like a fun time?” Yuichi had never spent time with a horse himself. Rosalind collected up her cards, before coming around to his side of the table. 

“Here, these are for you.” She handed over not only her tournament marker, but a card too. “I have heaps of this card, so don’t you worry about taking it. Don’t forget me when you win, ok?” She grinned. “I hope it helps! I know its not a dragonsbane card like your other ones, but your knights need horses if they are going to ride out.” She winked, and Yuichi took them, a little bewildered about it.

“Thanks Rosalind, I’ll be sure to add it to my deck.” He added the spell Pony Party into his own card deck, and folded up the marker, putting it into his pocket.

“I hope you make it to the finals!” She skipped away, in a better mood. Yuichi glanced around, and there was still no sign of anyone else he knew.  _ Looks like its time to keep going... _


	3. Jack and the Chef

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After defeating Rosalind and gaining the Quick-play Spell Pony Party, Yuichi is found by his best friend Jack, reunited with his sister Yuna, and enters his second duel.

“Hey, Yuichi, I found you!” This time, it was a familiar voice that the duelist heard call out to him. It was Jack, Emanuel’s son, who often ran the card shop more than his father did. He hurried over after waving from where he was, as Yuichi turned to face him.

“Hey there Jack. It’s nice to see a familiar face among such a crowd. Yuna was with me but she left before the announcement, so I can’t find her.” Yuichi was still watching the crowd in case he spotted his sister anywhere.

Jack glanced around too. “Well, that aside, how is the tournament going? Are you enjoying yourself?” Yuichi stopped to look at his friend.

“Yeah, I won a duel against a girl called Rosalind Equidae. She  _ really _ loved her horses. She gave me a card, too.” He remembered the Pony Party card that he now had in his deck.

Jack thought about that. It wasn’t often that people just gave their cards away. “That was nice of her. Glad you are already one duel down though, sounds like a pretty good start.”

The boys wandered around, trying to find duelists that were still in the competition, and weren’t busy. As they walked, they passed the stage, which still had the easel on it, covered by the red cloth that Yuichi had seen earlier that day. “Hey Jack, what do you think is under there?” He pointed up to the easel.

“Oh, that?” Jack seemed to become a little embarrassed. “It’s for the auction they are planning, there is going to be a party later tonight for all the rich people to buy a particular rare card set my dad made… the funds from it are going to be put into improving the holographic systems and whatnot for duels in the future.”

“Hang on a second-” Yuichi stopped. “Your dad actually  _ makes _ the cards? I thought he just sold them!” He scratched the back of his head.

Jack shook his own head. “Nah, Dad makes the cards and I do more of the selling… though he lets me help make them sometimes. How else do you think we are able to sell so many rare ones?” Jack grinned sheepishly at his best friend. “It’s why I don’t duel, I don’t want to be tempted into making my own overpowered deck just because I can- I enjoy the artistic process of it, just like my Dad does.”

Yuichi was dumbfounded by this news. “He makes the cards…. Wow… how did that never come up in conversation before? He actually  _ makes _ them by hand…. That’s awesome.” A grin spread across his own face. “You promise to show me some time?”

“I guess I have to now, don’t I?” Jack joked, and the boys both laughed. Suddenly, a pair of arms draped over both their shoulders, holding them into place, shocking both of them.

“Glad to see you boys are having fun! It’s sorta like a big party, they even have food carts outside.” A familiar head popped up in between the both of theirs, and she burst out laughing when she saw their stunned expressions. “Haha, you boys are priceless sometimes, you know that, right?” Yuna kept laughed, unable to help herself.

“Yuna!” Yuichi protested, and broke away from her to turn and face his sister. “Don’t do that, you could have just said hi.” He crossed his arms.

“H-Hi Yuna, it’s nice to see you again.” Yuna let go of Jack as he spoke to her.

“Hi Jack. Anyway!” Yuna clasped her hands together. “Have you been in any duels yet?” She asked, eager to know.

Yuichi nodded. “Yeah, just one so far. I’m looking for another one though, and no luck yet. Rosalind found me last time.”

“Have you tried outside?” Both boys shook their heads. "Why not?"

Yuichi shrugged. "It feels too flashy. I'd much rather my cards stay as cards, and speak on their own as they were intended to be."

Yuna began nodding, as if agreeing with herself. “Weird pride complex, alright then. Maybe we could just ask people if they are free to duel? Or, find a duel already in progress, and challenge whoever wins?” She suggested.

“Why didn’t I think of that…?” Jack groaned. Yuna patted him on the shoulder, whilst Yuichi was already looking to try and scope out another duel.

“Because you can’t think of everything?” She suggested.

“Yeah, but you always come up with the good ideas when you’re around…” Jack sighed that time.

The conversation between his friend and his sister became background noise, along with most of the other chatter around as he saw something of interest, slowly heading towards a new duel. The words he heard coming from the duel table, most likely the cards that were being played, were confusing Yuichi greatly.

“Now, the spell Kitchen Cleaning lets me return all my Pantry monsters from my field to my hand, dealing you 500 points of damage for each.” A man with a chef’s outfit spoke, a large and jolly grin about his face. His opponent looked shocked as his life points ran out.

“That is the most bizarre deck I have ever seen! I never even knew these cards existed-” The opponent collected up their cards, flabbergasted, and leaving in a sort of stuporous state. The chef looked up, spotting the yellow tie around Yuichi’s arm before the boy’s face.

“Ah, another challenger ready to enter the kitchen ey? Sit down boy, I’ll bet you’ll serve up some good competition!” A hearty chuckle followed the words of the chef, giving off the notions of both kindness, and a competitive spirit.

“Alright…?”  _ This will be a duel to remember, that’s for sure. _ Yuichi thought to himself, sitting down opposite his newest opponent. He was hoping that there weren’t too many more kitchen references on his way though.

“Me name’s Chef Cook, who’re you?” They held out a large hand, which matched the large body of the rest of the man.

Yuichi took it cautiously, though his words were much more blunt in his surprise. “Wait, that’s actually your last name??”

This earned him a smack on the back of the head from his sister, who had reappeared behind him, along with a certain friend in tow. “Be nice bro.”

“Back off Yuna.” He grumbled, earning another laugh from Cook.

“Ah, the relationships of siblings!”

This time, Jack poked Yuichi, who had already begun shuffling his deck. “Don’t forget to say your name, the officiator is waiting.”

“Please, call me Amanda.”

“Sorry, Amanda is waiting.”

Yuichi glanced up, having forgotten that as this was a tournament and not just a school throwdown, he had people skills to consider and formality to follow. “Oh, right- Sorry, my name is Yuichi Arrow. It’s nice to meet you Chef. You have a very… peculiar deck.”

“Why thank you! I love my deck, because it represents me perfectly!” He gave his cards an affectionate pat once he felt they were shuffled. Yuichi put his own beside Chef’s so they could cut each other's decks, as per the rules.

“As does mine.” Yuichi allowed a small smile to emerge on his face, before his ‘dueling expression’ returned. 

“Are the competitors ready?” Amanda asked, ready for them to begin.

“I can’t wait, this should be good!” Yuna clapped her hands softly.

Jack agreed with her. “I’m right there with you.” He grabbed a nearby, empty chair and sat down, ready to enjoy the duel.

  
“Let’s duel!” Both players spoke at once, drawing their five cards.

“I’ll go first, if you don’t mind.” Chef Cook began, shifting the cards in his hand so he could grab the one he wanted to play. "I play the spell Crockery Shelf, which, by paying 2000 life points, I can summon three Crockery cards from my hand or deck." He put his hand of cards down and began his deck-search.

"Pretty risky move, to halve your life points like that on the first turn. I hope the cards are worth it." Yuichi commented as he strategized with his own hand.

"Oh I'm far from done! I'm only just starting to cook up a storm." Chef chuckled and played out his Crockery Crafter, Cleaner and Collector to the field. He then shuffled his deck, and Amanda gave it a bit of a shuffle as well to ensure there was no cheating, before it was put back down. He had his remaining four cards in his hand, of which he began to play more moves from for his turn. “I now play the spell card Cutlery Cupboard, which allows me to summon two ‘Cutlery’ Monsters from my hand to my field.” As he placed the Cutlery Cleaner and Cutlery Collector onto his field, his monster zones became completely full.

“That’s… a lot of monsters for your first turn.” Yuichi commented, though he had the feeling that Chef Cook wasn’t done yet. He was proven right when Chef began to reach for his monster cards.

“I cast Polymerization from my hand, to fuse my three ‘Crockery’ monsters together, to summon forth my Crockery Queen!” He smiled excitedly. Crockery Queen is a Fusion/Effect type monster that has 2400/2000, but it was increased by 200 for every Crockery card in the graveyard, boosting its attack and defence points to being a total of 3000/2600.

Chef then overlapped his two cutlery cards, which suggested he was about to Xyz summon. “I overlay my two Cutlery cards to Xyz summon;” He took another card from his extra deck, leaving one more. “Cutlery King!” This was an Xyz/Effect monster, requiring two level 4 cutlery cards, and possessing 3000 ATK, and 2000 DEF. It’s ability was to discard one Xyz unit, to add 300 ATK points until the end of the turn.

“That’s the end of my turn, since I can’t attack yet.” He nodded to Yuichi. “Show me what you got!”

Yuichi nodded, reminding himself of his strategy. “That’s quite the tableware set you have there. But can it stand up to an army? I special summon Dragonsbane Garrison from my hand, as you have monsters, and I don’t.” He placed it onto the field in defence mode. “I then normal summon my Dragonsbane Messenger, who’s ability allows me to special summon one level four or below monster from my hand. I choose Dragonsbane Knight.” He placed the next two cards onto his field. “Now, with these three cards, I too overly them and summon Dragonsbane King’s Knight.” He always felt proud as he spoke those words, summoning his token monster. It was an Xyz/Effect monster, that, when one overlay unit was used, all dragon type monsters on the field have their ATK reduced to zero. With that, he then set two cards, and ended his turn, as his monster also had 3000 ATK, along with 2900 DEF points.l

Chef raised an eyebrow. “Alright then, I thought maybe you’re army was going to attack this turn!” He chuckled, drawing a card. “I drew, and now play, Pot of Greed, letting me draw two more cards.” He sent the spell to his graveyard, and drew the two cards. “I now normal summon Butcher Baker, who has much a similar ability as your Messenger did, except instead of a level four or below, mine has to have 1800 or less attack points.” He special summoned Chef Sharpshooter, who had exactly 1800 ATK.

“Now, I Synchro Summon my Level Four Tuner monster Sharpshooter, with Butcher Baker, and Crockery Queen, to form Kitchen Cupboard!” He moved his cards around so he could gain the new Synchro monster to his field.   
  
“Your deck makes good use of many summoning methods.” Yuichi complimented.

Chef nodded. “Now for my attack phase! My Cutlery King attacks your King’s Knight, and activates its ability, discarding one overly unit to gain 300 extra attack.” He declared.

Yuichi’s expression didn’t change from its calm demeanour, as he flipped over one of his set cards. “My Scrap Iron Scarecrow activates, and negates your attack, resetting itself.” He then flipped it back over, not being able to use it again this turn.

“Well, alright then, I attack again, but with Kitchen Cupboard.” The new Synchro Monster with 3600ATK points, destroying the King’s Knight on Yuichi’s field, making him lose 600 Life points. After the successful attack, Chef Cook ended his turn.

“Well, I see you sure do have quite the recipe for success there…. But it might end in disaster after my turn.” Yuichi said as he saw the card he drew. “Much like you last turn, I play Pot of Greed, and draw two new cards.” He did so. “Now, I activate from my field, DNA Surgery. I declare all monsters on the field to become Dragon Types.” He said calmly, though inside he was quite excited. He had the glimmer in his eyes of someone who knew he was about to win, and with only one monster on the field, and no cards anywhere else that could help him, Chef got the distinct feeling he was in trouble.   
  
“I now, from my hand, activate Monster Reborn, to return my Dragonsbane King’s Knight from the grave to my field.” He returned his Xyz monster that had no overlay units… which he was soon to fix.

"Also from my hand, I activate the card Overlay Regen, attaching it to my Xyz monster as an overlay unit." He smiled a little, really getting into the duel. "Now, I play the continuous spell Dragon Drain, meaning any time the attack points of a monster changes, I can add the change in attack points to a monster of my choice." Chef saw what was happening, but had no way to stop it. "I activate the Xyz ability of Dragonsbane King's Knight, causing all dragon type monsters on the field to have their life points reduced to zero- and though that does include my Kings Knight, thanks to DNA Manipulation, I chain that skill with the effect of Dragon Drain.

King's Knight and both Kitchen Cupboard and Cutlery King had their attack points reduced to 0, but with the effect of Dragon Drain, he was able to add back not just the 3000 attack points that Kings Knight originally had, but also the 3600 of Kitchen Cupboard, and the 3000 that Cutlery King had, giving a total of 9600 attack. And with two attack mode monsters with no attack points, and nothing to defend his 2000 life points left, it was over by a long shot.

"That ends the duel!" Amanda announced, after Yuichi declared his attack.

Chef held out a hand. "Well done. Your army really did show me what's what in that duel, and impressively so!" He nodded. Yuichi shook his hand, and then the chef offered all of his duel sashes he had collected so far.

"No, thank you. I only need one." He only took one, packed up his cards, and stood. "Thank you for the duel."

"Thank you for letting me stay in the comp a bit longer!" Chef Cook smiled. "See ya round!" The chef left with his deck, and Yuichi sighed gently, before smiling.


	4. Dragonsbane vs Mermails

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The third duel of the tournament begins, but the officiator notices something strange as it happens, though the duelists themselves seem unaware....

After the duel with Chef, Jack and Yuna were feeling decidedly hungry, so they dragged Yuichi off to the food carts set up in the green area out to one side of the convention centre that hadn’t been taken up by hologram-producing dueling tables. Smells of fried foods and fairground feasts assaulted their noses, and Yuna led the boys along until she had found what she wanted to eat first. “Poffertjes! Yuuuuuum.” She nearly drooled. “You boys want some?” Yuna glanced between them, and saw Jack looking at a different caravan.

“Hey, I’m going to go get one of those potato cheese twisty twirl stick things, I’ll see you guys later.” Jack slipped away, allowing the twins to hang out with each other like they would at home.  
  
“Sure, I’ll have some. Saves ordering at a second one.” Yuichi shrugged. Food was food to him, and tended to be eaten more than actually thought about. Yuna was usually the one that tried cooking when she took the fancy, but more often than not they just ate packet food they had bought from the supermarket that shopping day.

Yuna had strawberries, cream and a nutty chocolate sauce covering hers, whilst Yuichi had banana, caramel and cream on his, and they wandered over to find a place to sit. “So, how many ties do you have now bro?” Yuna spoke to her brother as they sat down on a nice looking, clean patch of grass.

“I have three, including my own. One from Rosalind, and one from Chef.” He took a bite out of his sweet food, allowing Yuna another chance to speak.  
  
“Sorry I missed your first duel, I just wanted to go find out if a rumour was true.” 

“Rumour?” He rested his arms on his crossed legs, looking to his twin as he awaited her elaboration.

After a gulp of food, and a drink of a milkshake they had picked up along the way to the grassy area, Yuna continued. “Derrick was in the tournament today, but I was just in time to see him lose his first duel… hehe, he was not happy about that.” She chuckled softly.

Yuichi sighed. “He probably deserved it, though I’m glad he went to duel in a professional manner… for once.” The brother returned to eating his own poffertjies.

"He probably won't hang around either, since he hasn't got any more duels to try and win." Yuna grinned. "Means less trouble for us!"

"That's true." Yuichi nodded simply. "I wonder who will be my next duel then." He sighed.

"Are you… actually worried about it? It's not like you to worry over a game." Yuna became concerned for her brother, putting a reassuring hand on his leg. "This isn't like you."

Yuichi looked into his sister's red eyes. "I've never been in a tournament like this before though either. I just need to prove to myself my deck and I are capable of dueling to win, without the need for justice involved…" He looked at his deck once it was in his hands. "Thanks for managing to watch that second duel today. It feels better knowing you are there, like I'm complete." He looked back at her eyes.

"Yuichi, relax! Think of it like the chess games you used to play, when you had fun...when we both had fun." Yuna gave him a smile despite the tough times she was reminding him of.

With a sigh and a slow nod, Yuichi put his deck away again, and they both stood, readying themselves for the next event.

~~~

They returned to the convention centre the next day, as the party slated for the night before had been postponed until the end of the first round, to save on costs and to make it more of a spectacle for everyone involved. Eager for his third duel, Yuichi parted ways in favour of scouting the competition, instead of hanging around the outskirts of Yuna's friendship circle.

As he hunted around, he happened across his officiator from his last duel, Amanda.

"Hey, Yuichi Arrow, right?" She approached him in a friendly manner.

He turned to her and gave a single, curt nod. "That's me. Hello again Amanda." Yuichi watched her slow down.

"Looking for another duel? If so, I have an opponent for you." Amanda gestured to a table with a boy dressed in a fishing get up, as if he had gone earlier in the day. He had his hat pulled over his eyes however, his deck on the table awaiting a duel while their duelist snoozed off the wait.

Yuichi looked between the duelist and Amanda. "How fortunate. That's exactly what I was hoping for, thank you." He joined them both at the table, and the fisherman woke up as if he were never asleep in the first place.

"Finley Minakshi, meet Yuichi Arrow, your next opponent." Amanda introduced them both to each other. With an unspoken agreement, they simply nodded a hello to each other, and began to ready their decks for the duel.

As they shuffled, Finley finally spoke, sounding slightly nasally as he did so. "Got a theme?" He handed his deck over to the other male.

Yuichi took it and handed over his own, to keep shuffling his opponents cards. "Dragonsbane, yours?"

"Mermail." Yuichi remembered looking into those cards, and other similar ones, knowing that the equip spells were a big factor on stopping the players opponent, as well as strengthening the monsters.

"Don't forget to wager the tournament markers as well please boys." Amanda reminded them both.

"I bet all mine if you wan'em. Then either way I'll be in, or I'll be fishin'." Finley shrugged. Yuichi shook his head.

"Just one will suffice me, thank you." He put one of his own onto the table. Finley matched it with a single one of his own, and they both drew cards. Amanda produced a coin. 

"Yuichi is heads, Finley is tails." She said before slipping the coin into the air, catching it, and putting it flat on the back of her non-preferred hand. Moving the hand she caught it with, careful not to drop the clipboard trapped between her upper arm and torso, Amanda revealed the toss as heads.

"Yuichi goes first!" She announced, letting both players draw their cards.

"I play the field spell Dragonsbane Flying Fortress. Whilst this card remains in play, all Dragonsbane monsters gain 300 extra attack." Yuichi placed his field spell, continuing. "I then set one card, and play Dragonsbane Knight in attack mode. His attack is boosted to 2100 thanks to the field spell." He ended his turn, and watched Finley make his move.

"After drawing one card, I set three cards, and then play Mermail Abyssgunde in Attack mode, then equipping her with Abyss-scale of the Kraken to boost her attack points by an extra 400." Finley had one card left in his hand now, while Yuichi had two. Mermail Abyssgunde was a level three monster, with a natural attack of 1400 and a defence of 800, though it's attack was now 1800..

 _Why did he do that? Abyssgunde still has less attack than my Knight… perhaps it's those set cards, or his equip spell has another effect. Might as well just play out my next turn as I normally would, and find out myself._ Yuichi thought to himself as he slowly drew another card.

He drew Dragon Capture Jar, a trap card that was relatively useless against Sea Serpent types like the Mermail cards, but he set it on his field anyway, as a bluff. "After setting this card, I normal summon Dragonsbane Rider." His Rider was a level 2 monster with 1200/1000, but with an extra 300 attack points, it was boosted to 1500 ATK. "I now attack your Abyssgunde with my Knight."

Abyssgunde was destroyed and sent to the graveyard, along with the equip spell. Amanda recorded the 300 points of damage that Finley took, but when Yuichi went to strike again, he activated a trap card.

"I play Abyss Sphere, allowing me to summon a Mermail from my deck- the Mermail stays on my field as long as the trap card does unless you destroy it, or when the trap card destroys itself at the end of your next turn." He searched for Abyssmander, and handed his deck over to their officiator, who gladly took it and shuffled the cards.

As Amanda shuffled, she noticed something strange about the boys before her. It was like they were possessed by ghosts or something, but she couldn't quite tell what they looked like, just that they were there. Continuing to shuffle, her eyes glanced between them both, and the only similarity, aside from them both being male duelists,was that they both wore strange necklaces, though Finley's was mostly hidden beneath his fishing attire. Giving the deck back, she put her clipboard down and took out her phone, the boys oblivious due to the continuation of the duel.

Abyssmander was now set in defence mode on Finley's field with Abyss-Sphere equipped, as he drew a new card. "I activate the special ability of a monster in my hand. By discarding one water monster to the Graveyard, I can special summon Mermail Abyssteus to my field."

Yuichi was ready for him though. "I activate Bottomless Trap Hole." He flipped over the card he had set on his first turn. Finley, having no way to stop it, begrudgingly moved it to be banished, as per the effect of the trap.

"I end my turn then…" he had no more cards in his hand left to play, and thus was left with very few options left.

Amanda noticed the creature behind Finley grow more solid in appearance for a moment, when Abyssteus was summoned to the field, but it immediately dimmed again when Abyssteus was banished.

Yuichi began his turn with a card draw, now holding two Dragonsbane Garrisons in his hand. He couldn't use their special ability to summon them right now, but he didn't need to either. "I normal summon my level four Dragonsbane Garrison in attack mode, his attack points being boosted up to 1800." He put the card gently onto the field. "I attack Mermail Abyssmander with my Dragonsbane Knight, and I then attack you directly with Dragonsbane Rider, and Garrison."

Finley activates a continuous trap card called Bubble Bringer. "This trap allows me to be protected from direct attacks from monsters that are level four or above."

Yuichi scratched his chin a moment. "That means only my Rider's attack goes through, as it is level two." Finley sent his monster to the Graveyard, and his life points decreased by 15100, going from 3700 to 2200. "I end my turn."

Amanda turned her attention to Yuichi during his turn, and the form appearing near to him was wavering closer to solidity. _Is he nearing the requirements for making it more real? What even is that creature… have I seen it before?_ Amanda asked herself, in great want of answers. She had been recording the duel the whole time with her phone, thankful that it too was able to pick up the otherworldly presences present.

Finley's turn ended quickly, as he set a single card.

Unable to use Dragon Drain currently, the newest card in his hand, Yuichi set his second Dragonsbane Garrison face down, before attacking Finley's face down monster with his own face up Garrison card.

"I reveal Mermail Abyssocea, whose 1900 defence points means you are dealt 100 points of damage." Finley spoke as the card was flipped face up in defence position.

"Then I shall attack again, with my 2100 attack points Knight, destroying your Abyssocea, and allowing me to attack directly with Rider yet again." Another destroyed monster for Finley, and another 1500 attack points dealt, leaving the fishing man on 700 life points left, total. Juxtaposing Finley's position was Yuichi, who had only just now lost life points on the seventh turn, and even then, it was only 100 of them.

Finley felt he didn't have too much more of a chance left for this duel, but he wasn't going to surrender either. When he drew his card, he set the monster and ended his turn once again, just like the precious turn.

Yuichi hardly even looked at the card he drew, heading straight to his battle phase, after quickly flipping his second Dragonsbane Garrison into attack mode. "I attack your face down with my first garrison."

"When Mermail Abyssgunde is sent to the Graveyard, I am allowed to special summon back Mermail Abyssmander from my graveyard, in defence position." Finley had activated his monster's special ability before searching his graveyard, and putting his chosen monster on to his field, sideways. 

"I then attack your Abyssmander, with my Knight, again." _One more attack and this duel is mine._ Yuichi thought to himself, eager to have this duel over.

"I activate Abyss Squall, summoning back from my graveyard three monsters in defence position." Finley spoke before Yuichi could declare his final attack. Bringing back Abyssmander, Abyssocea, and Abyssgunde, Yuichi no longer could attack.

"I end my turn then."

"The effect of my Abyss Squall ends… and the trap, along with my monsters, are sent to the Graveyard now." Finley's field was now completely empty aside from Bubble Bringer. He drew a card, and began his turn. "By discarding Bubble Bringer to my graveyard, I'm allowed to bring back two level three monsters from my graveyard." He brought back two Abyssgunde's, in defence position. "I then set my third card and end my turn."

_He is open to being attacked by level fours again. I can definitely win this turn._

Drawing another Dragonsbane Knight, he summoned it to the field, giving him a five monster army, faced down by three defence position mermaids. "My Knight attacks your face down card." Abysslung was flipped up and destroyed, and after having his monsters defeat the Abyssgunde's, Yuichi won the duel with an attack to spare.

Amanda put her phone down, no longer recording as the ghosts of the monsters vanished. As she marked down the final, official winner of the match onto her paper, the boys packed away their decks.

"Here. This is yours now." Finley handed over his yellow marker, placing it in the centre of the table. He then gave the rest of his markers to Amanda. "Keep these, I quit. The tournament is taking up my fishing time." He then turned and left, leaving a bewildered Amanda. 

"Thanks for participating…!" She managed to call to his leaving figure.

As Yuichi went to collect his fourth marker, he felt something hard inside. As he pulled the fabric away, a necklace was revealed underneath. _Why would he give me this…?_ The boy asked himself.

"May I speak with you a moment please Yuichi?" Amanda asked cautiously, coming over with her phone.

"Of course." He nodded, holding the necklace in one hand, the new yellow fabric now in his pocket.

She sat down in the chair Finley had used, after bringing it beside Yuichi. "I'm sorry for recording this, but there is something you should see…"


End file.
